Switch on! Your Switched-on Guide to Therapeutic Foster Care

Welcome to Cheshire County Council's Therapeutic Fostering service. We are always pleased to hear from people wishing to foster a child or children.

Switch to a dramatically different approach:

Foster care is all about caring for one or more children, in your home for a specified period of time – be that a day, a week or until they reach adulthood. So what is Switch? And exactly how does it differ from the traditional approach? Well, that’s what we’ll help you to find out.

Switch is a structured programme of foster care, specifically designed to help support young people with complex difficulties. For example, perhaps they do not attend school regularly or are displaying severe levels of anti-social behaviour. If so, and these young people agree to it, then Switch offers a course of intensive and individualised care aimed at turning their lives around.

Although groundbreaking in the UK, this model of intervention, actually originated in Oregon, USA. Known as Multidimensional Treatment Foster Care, it’s a scheme that we know will work, as it’s been tried and tested for over 20 years and has consistently delivered positive outcomes.

It’s a scheme with specific goals that you, as the foster carer, will help the young person placed with you to achieve, through a gradual and targeted process of small steps. For example, if they are a recurring truant, the end goal may be that they regularly attend school. And a small step along the road to this goal may be that they get out of bed at 7am each morning.

And this targeted programme is all about points and levels. The more a young person achieves, the more points they get. The more points they get, the more privileges they receive – things like extra talk time on the phone or a visit to a snow boarding class – whatever flicks their switch!

Flick a switch:

Your aim will be to help each child take responsibility for their behaviour and understand that their actions have consequences. The scheme’s overall aims are to:

• Reinforce appropriate behaviour at school and home
• Promote positive social networks
• Reduce offending behaviour
• Specify clear, consistent rules and limits
• Increase school attendance, achievement and academic achievement
• Help families to work through conflict

Due to the nature of the programme, there is no typical length of time that a young person will be placed with you. However the minimum is usually 6 months, lasting anything up to 18 months. At the end of this, they will either return home, go to a long-term foster placement or move to more independent living.

Your Support Network:

Again, very different to existing foster care, you will have 24/7 support from the clinical team to rely on, in order to handle your specific queries relating to behaviour or management of the programme. You and the support team will also discuss daily feedback from home and school and attend weekly planning meetings to determine the care plan. The clinical support team
is made up of:

The Programme Manager – they will administer and ensure the smooth running of the project.

Programme Supervisor – they will work with both you and team members to draw up the young person’s individual plan.

Individual Therapist - will work with the young person, acting as their advocate and supporting them in managing their behaviour.

Birth Family Therapist - will work with the young person's birth family, if there is still contact, and/or develop a plan for them to return home.

Skills Trainers – will work with the young person in the community. They’ll offer positive role modelling, mentoring and aim to boost their confidence, as well as helping the young person to practise new skills.

Supervising Social Worker – their role is to train and support you. They will therefore be your most regular contact and meet with you frequently.

Education Worker – will support the young person with all aspects of their education.

Programme Administrator – will provide administrative support to the whole team and will have daily contact with you.

The Carers – That’s YOU! Your input will be vital to the young person’s development plans, as you aim to flick the switch that will help them achieve a much brighter future.

The Young People:

Of course, one of the main things you’ll be interested in will be the type of children or teenagers that you’ll be required to foster.

Well, they are usually all between the age of 10 and 16. Generally they will have either a history of multiple placements or complex needs. But they will all have had different experiences that have led them to display challenging behaviour. Nearly all will have had difficulties in relationships with other young people and adults. Some may be working to get back into school or be at risk of exclusion. Sometimes they may be involved in criminal behaviours and/or substance misuse. And they will often have low self-esteem coupled with a lack of self control.

However the key thing to remember is that after assessment, every young person referred to this programme shows strong signs that structure and close supervision are necessary in order for them to progress. And most importantly, these young people aren’t resistant to a foster care placement. They are actually interested in working towards improvement for themselves, because they have realised that it’s time to turn their lives around.

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